Little Victories
by Chalicewell
Summary: Our vampires are back from France and the threat there was eliminated, but there could be more problems coming from that side of the pond. Another challenge could be the new District Attorney for Los Angeles, who has an interest in the odd and unusual. What will he find out?
1. Chapter 1

_**Welcome to a new story, and thank you for continuing to follow my Moonlight universe. This takes place about three months after our vampires return from France. Josef is still watching what's going on in Europe and there's a new District Attorney in Los Angeles who might be too curious about the odd and unusual. Hope you enjoy!**_

**Disclaimer: I only say this once—I own nothing by my imagination and love of Moonlight. **

Chapter 1

It was overcast in Los Angeles, with rain threatening. Annie was driving the Cleaner's van to a location where someone had called in an emergency. She turned off on the 101 freeway as the drops began to fall, knowing the rain would snarl traffic to a crawl and it was better to take surface streets. They finally pulled into a long drive in one of the northern suburbs. It was a mid-century ranch on a large property. Annie was glad to see the house was hidden from the road by mature landscaping. It wouldn't do to have any nosey neighbors looking in. She motioned for the two other Cleaners to head around back. They were all armed, not knowing what to expect. The call came from a hysterical female saying she needed help with her vampire.

Annie knocked on the door, which was answered by a blonde human, looking visibly upset. The woman started a moment to see the Cleaner in black leather, but stood back for Annie to enter.

"I'm so glad you're here," the woman said.

Annie holstered her handgun and asked, "Who are you?"

"I'm Marie, but you must come and help Max." She turned and led Annie into another room where a man lay back on a leather sofa, his eyes closed. Annie called for the other two Cleaners, Rita and Kate and they came quickly.

"What do we have?" Rita asked.

"I don't know," Annie said, grimly. The Cleaners looked at the vampire and realized his scent was diminishing. There was no need to touch him, they could tell he'd met the true death. As they observed him, they saw he was tanned and healthy-looking.

"Is he….." Marie whispered.

Annie turned to the human. "Yes, he's dead."

Marie broke down in tears, and collapsed onto a nearby chair. Annie was sympathetic, but she needed answers.

"I'm sorry, but I have to ask you some questions. Why don't we go outside?" Annie gently led the crying woman toward the doors to the back of the house.

Rita retrieved a body bag and the two Cleaners quickly removed the unfortunate vampire to their van.

The rain had stopped and Annie guided Marie to a chair under the pergola. She asked, "Who is Max?"

Marie gulped and said, "Max Fletcher. He's owns property around LA and has investments. I'm—was Max's exclusive, you know?" Annie nodded, knowing that often wealthier vampires would keep a human as a private donor.

"I don't know what to do," Marie continued, her tears starting again. "Now that he's gone I don't want to stay here, maybe I'll call some friends or go to a hotel."

Annie needed to ask more questions, but could see Marie was in no state to talk. This was a suspicious death, and she was the prime witness. Annie didn't want the human taking off until they'd found out what happened.

"Marie, I understand that you don't want to be here, but we'll need to ask you more questions later. You're the only one who can help. Why don't I find you a safe place to stay? There will be other ladies there and plenty of room. Will you do that?"

Marie sniffled a moment and nodded her head. "I'll be glad to do anything for Max."

"Why don't you pack a bag and I'll make the arrangements."

Marie left the room and Annie quickly called Hale at Josef Kostan's house. She explained the situation, and Hale said he would send a limo to pick up the grieving freshie.

"_I believe Mr. Josef did business with Mr. Fletcher. Is there any sign of foul play?"_ Hale asked.

"Not that we can see, but I'm going to take the body to a freezer at our headquarters and call Guillermo. He worked at the morgue and maybe he can figure it out. I'll call Mick St. John, too."

"_Good. We'll keep Miss Marie here until you figure out what's going on. I don't like vampires dying with no reason."_

"That's for sure," Annie growled. "I'll be in touch."

Rita and Kate came back into the room. "Did you get him loaded up?" Annie asked.

"Yeah," Rita said. "I've never seen anything like it. No marks, just gone."

"He looked almost human. Did you see his skin? It's so dark he must be getting that spray-on stuff the humans use to get a tan," Kate commented.

"I think it's worse than that," Annie mumbled under her breath.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

The masculine room was a counterpoint to the four women who sat around a poker table. Beth St. John dealt the cards to her friends, Simone, Megan and Sofia. They had taken over one of the rooms upstairs at the Blue Moon Club for a regular poker game. Every third Thursday, Beth, Megan, Simone and Sofia would get together for a girls night out. Sometimes if they weren't working, Annie and Bella joined them. They didn't always play poker, sometimes they shopped or went to a club to dance. Their husbands or significant others were happy to have their ladies go out to have fun—at least that's what they said. Simone told Josef if he was spending time with his men friends for billiards or poker, the ladies could too. Having over 400 years of experience, he quickly acquiesced to his wife and privately urged his friends to agree with their ladies.

Now Beth looked at her hand and threw in a few chips to start off. They played for chips, but not money. The losers bought the drinks for the evening.

"Fifty to you, Simone," Beth said with a raised eyebrow.

"Hmmph," her friend snorted and threw some chips on the table. "I'll call."

Sofia smiled and folded as did Megan. Beth put down her cards. "Full house, jacks high."

Breaking a large grin, Simone countered, "Full house, kings high."

"Damn," Beth growled as Simone raked in the chips. The door to the room opened and a handsome young man came in, carrying a tray. He was wearing a shirt opened down his chest and they could hear his heartbeat. "I'm Jack and I thought you lovely ladies would like some refreshment."

The tray contained a bucket of ice and champagne as well as a container of blood, and Jack rolled up his sleeves, offering his wrists to the group. Simone reached out with a smile and drew the human to her. Her eyes turned and fangs came out as she bit gently into his arm. Jack couldn't hold back a moan as Simone's sensual bite overwhelmed him. Megan and Beth looked on in amusement, but Sophia, being younger had a harder time controlling her urges. When she smelled the blood, her eyes crystalled and she put her hand up to cover her fangs.

Simone saw Sofia's discomfort and after about ten seconds stopped drinking and closed the wounds with her tongue. Jack also noticed and went around the table, offering his other wrist.

"No, that's all right," Sofia said, somewhat embarrassed. Ewan had taught her to feed fresh, but she felt uncomfortable in front of others.

"Go ahead, hun," Simone encouraged her. "You need the practice, and we won't let you hurt him."

The handsome waiter smiled encouragingly. "It's fine, I've had young vampires bite me before."

Sofia nodded, taking his arm softly and sniffed, licking along the vein until she found the right place. Her vampire came out, and she bit down, the blood welling up into her mouth. The warm blood almost overwhelmed her, but Megan said in the vampire undertone, "_Listen to his heartbeat—don't lose yourself."_

Sofia heard Megan and pulled away from Jack's wrist, closing the wounds. She checked his heartbeat and was glad to hear it steady. She looked up at him, smiling her thanks.

Jack smiled back, saying, "You're a natural. Let me know when you're back at the club, I'll be glad to see you again."

Simone chuckled. "Put that on our bill, Jack. These ladies will be paying."

The other three groaned as the young man left. By common accord, they took a break from the cards and helped themselves to champagne.

"You did great, Sofia," Beth commented. "Do you drink fresh much at home?"

"No, but it's not because we don't want to, it's just not very convenient with our work and schedules."

"I know what you mean," Beth nodded. "I don't need a parade of freshies running in and out of the loft. Josef does have some donors at the office, but I'm usually too busy to take advantage."

"How's work been, Beth? Simone asked. "Josef said you've been taking care with a couple of the charity programs he's hosting."

Beth took a sip of champagne. "Yes, they're both coming together. I think Josef will only have to spend about fifteen minutes at each of them. I know how he hates the spotlight."

"That's for sure," Simone laughed. "You're doing a great job keeping the press informed so he doesn't have to see them."

"So you're not working with Mick?" Sofia asked.

"No, not so much. Most of his cases lately have been unfaithful husbands or corporate theft."

"But what about—" Simone started.

"What?" Beth asked.

"Well, there was a rogue vamp that the sire abandoned up in Northridge. Didn't Mick handle that? I know the Cleaners called Josef."

Beth shook her head, frowning. "I don't think they called Mick on that one. At least he didn't mention it to me."

The conversation wandered as Beth thought about Mick. After they returned from France, he seemed was reticent to discuss what he was doing. He only told her he didn't have anything more than divorce cases. Now that she thought about it, she hadn't been with Mick on a case or stake out since before they went to Europe. Her eyes narrowed and she determined she would talk to Mick as soon as she could.

Beth was brought out of her reverie when Megan asked Simone, "What have you heard from France?"

"The British council is still there. They're trying to get some of the older French vamps involved. Gaston Duvall is still working with them."

"Huh," Beth snorted, "he's lucky they took him on."

"Yeah, I think in hindsight Josef is sorry he didn't just kill him," Simone said.

"Well, at least I know Coraline won't be knocking on our door anytime soon. Her brother Henri's life is forfeit if she does," Beth said.

"And Josef will make sure of that," Simone responded with a wicked smile.

Megan picked up the cards. "Shall we have another few hands before it gets light?"

The ladies nodded, and the older vampire began to deal.

Across town at the Kostan Building, Mick St. John stopped by to see if his friend wanted to play some eight ball, since Beth was out with her friends and he was at a loose end.

Security knew to let Mick in without any hesitation, and he strolled into the office as Josef was finishing a call.

Mick felt Josef's disquiet. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know. The Cleaners just called me and they found Max Fletcher dead at his house."

"I think I met him once at one of your parties," Mick responded. "What happened?"

"His freshie found him and called the Cleaners. When they got there the girl was too upset to tell them anything so they sent her over to my place until she calms down. The body's at the Cleaner's warehouse and Guillermo's going over. You need to check it out and find out why he died."

Mick reared back as Josef's demand caught him off guard. "Wait a minute, I don't have time to take this on right now."

"What do you mean? This could be a problem for the community," Josef frowned.

"I'm just busy right now," Mick said, trying to keep his tone from being defensive. "If there's anything going on, the Cleaners can handle it."

Josef leaned forward in his chair. He hadn't seen much of Mick since they came back from France, and he didn't like what he was feeling now. "What's going on, Mick?"

"Nothing, I have a lot of cases."

"Don't give me that shit," Josef growled. "You've always been ready to help the community." He reached out with his power. He didn't often let it loose, but he needed to know what was bothering Mick.

"This is about Beth, isn't it?" Josef exclaimed.

Mick didn't appreciate Josef being able to read him so well and stated, "It's none of your business."

"It's my business if it affects your ability to help the vamps and humans under my protection. What's changed?"

His friend went to the small bar in Josef's office and poured them both a single malt scotch. Mick sat down across from Josef and said, "What's changed is that I don't want to expose Beth to the risks of my work."

Josef choked a bit while taking a sip of the delicious liquid. "What? After all this time you think Blondie is going to shy away from something dangerous? You couldn't keep her from threats when she was human, and you won't now that she's a vamp."

Mick drained his glass, feeling the alcohol burn down this throat. He got up, looking a Josef in anger. "Every time we get involved with something, Beth gets hurt. I had to turn her when we were kidnapped. This last time in France, she was injured because I was involved with finding du Plessis."

"Have you talked to Beth about this?" Josef asked.

When Mick shook his head no, Josef said, "It's a good thing because I'm sure she'd stake your sorry ass and throw you off the Santa Monica pier."

Mick looked stubborn, and Josef continued. "When Beth finds out you've been keeping her out of the loop she won't be happy. Annie is one of her friends and she'll be telling the story of this vampire who died mysteriously."

Mick ran his hand over his face. He knew he should have talked to Beth when they got back to LA, but they both plunged into work and Mick started taking more routine jobs while Beth was involved with Kostan Industries. When she asked about his cases, he told her there was nothing of interest he was investigating.

Josef got up and refilled their glasses. "So you've been trying to protect Beth by not having her involved in anything that might be risky."

"Yeah, pretty much. I should have talked to her about it before now."

"Well it better be soon, because she's going to want to get in on this problem once she hears about it."

"I know. I guess I don't want her to keep seeing the darker side of our existence."

Josef shook his head in disbelief. "Man, you remember she was a reporter, right? She saw her boyfriend die, as well as other vampire murders. Hell, she even staked your ex, which made me think she'd be a great vamp. She knows the risks and you need to support her."

Mick straightened his shoulders and looked at his friend. "Yeah, I'd better talk to her about all this."

"Good, because I have to work with her and if she's mad at you, I'm gonna hear about it. She'll understand—just tell her the truth and she'll be fine," Josef smiled.

Relaxing a bit, Mick returned the smile. "I'll do that, but maybe I'll bring her some flowers, too. It couldn't hurt."

"Good thinking, buddy."

TBC

_**Thank you for reading; I hope it's a good start. Next chapter, Mick talks with Beth (finally), and we meet the new District Attorney for Los Angeles. **_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed the first chapter, and to the Guests, thank you too! You are all awesome and I'm so glad you continue to enjoy Moonlight. Sorry for the delay in posting, I've been having some unwelcome health issues. Now we get to meet the new DA for Los Angeles.**_

Chapter 2

Robert Hemmings leaned back in his chair, looking around his office. As the new DA for Los Angeles County, he had a huge responsibility. He had two Assistant DA's as well as investigators, attorneys and paralegals that reported to him. Rob was a go-getter who had worked his way up from a prosecuting attorney in a small town. Starting in the military, he gained a law degree after his discharge and went to work as a trial attorney in Atlanta. He struggled into the government legal system and after a stint in Chicago, was offered the DA position in Los Angeles. It was a big step up, but he was confident he could handle it. It had been two weeks since he'd taken over the office and after meetings with his new staff; he felt he knew his people and their capabilities.

A tall, muscular blond, he let his hair grow a little longer than when he was in the Air Force. He knew his size was imposing and used it in his trial work. He had no children and was divorced from his wife, who lived on the East Coast. Rob was totally involved in his job and in his spare time he worked on old police cases.

Getting another cup of coffee, Rob looked at the files on his desk. He'd asked for the Los Angeles cold case and unsolved files for the last two years. There were quite a few, and he'd gone through them over the weekend and put them in order of importance. He set aside files on gang activity, reasoning the gangs would still be around later, although he did have an interesting report on the gang leader Tejada, who seemed to have disappeared over two years ago.

Rob opened the file on an unsolved case that had been a disaster for the department. He read the documents again, and was intrigued with the incident. The perp had gotten away, and nothing was ever found. The detectives had worked on it for a while but new cases took precedence and the case was abandoned. As he read the file again, he could see some lines of inquiry that could be worthwhile. This was what he loved, finding a mystery and following the clues.

He would need to make notes on how to proceed with the case. Rob put the file into his briefcase to take home. _Emma Monahan, I'm going to find you, _he thought.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Beth had been busy at Kostan Industries preparing for several events, but it didn't mean she didn't notice that her husband had been skulking around the loft. Ever since they returned from France, Mick wouldn't talk about their trip or his current cases. She felt guilt coming from him and seemed to be brooding again. He'd been hitting the freezer early and was asleep by the time she was ready to retire.

She'd cleared her desk and came home early. It was time for a little chat with her handsome vampire. Beth entered the loft quietly, and heard Mick in his office. He was ruffling through some papers on his desk and she came into the room so quickly he didn't have time to react and leave.

"Uh, hi sweetheart, you're home early."

Beth didn't answer, but closed the door to the outside hall and locked it. Mick looked at her with a little frown. "What's going on?"

She shrugged off her jacket, dropping it to the floor. Her tight tank top revealed her breasts beneath the thin material. Even though she was annoyed, she couldn't forget this gorgeous man was hers.

Mick's eyes glazed over as Beth came to sit on his lap. He loved when she got aggressive and he moved a bit in his chair, trying to relieve the pressure he felt in his jeans. She kissed his ear, moving down his neck. Her fangs came out and she scraped under his collar as he growled, pulling her tight to him. He was just about ready to throw her over his shoulder and head for the bedroom when Beth sat up and said, "Okay, St. John, what the hell is going on?"

Mick's brain was still set on lust and he shook his head trying to clear it. "What?"

Beth frowned at him. "You've been telling me you have no interesting cases, but I found out there was a rogue vamp up north you didn't handle. What's up with that?"

Mick was still trying to focus and said, "Uh, I don't remember."

"Bullshit!" Beth exclaimed. "The Cleaners called you and you said you were too busy. You never mentioned it to me. What don't you want me to know, Mick? Is it that Cleaner, Claudia? I know she's been after you."

Mick was shocked by her comment and said, "That's not true, I haven't been near Claudia."

She knew that Mick had no designs on the red-headed Cleaner, but she hoped this would shake him up so he would tell her what was really bothering him.

Mick couldn't stand it, and swooped Beth into his arms. He spoke into her ear. "I'm not interested in anyone else, sweetheart, you know that."

"Then what's the matter?"

He sighed and knew he couldn't hide anything from Beth—he never could. Letting her go, he walked away, scrubbing his hand over his face.

"I don't want to put you in danger anymore," he said, his voice rough. "It seems when we get involved with something you get hurt."

Beth's eyes widened. "Mick, really? After all this time? I'm a vampire now, I can heal easily. Why would you be afraid for me?"

He started pacing. "Yeah, I know. But I brought you into this existence and I'm your sire. It's my responsibility to keep you safe."

She smiled at his foolishness. "Of course I'm safe. I've been safe since I was four years old and you saved me from Coraline."

He heard the sincerity in her voice. "Oh Beth, I never want you to be hurt."

She put her arms around his waist and looked up at him. "Everyone is at risk, Mick. We may not be easy to kill, but can die, too. Vampires have more chances than humans. We just have to be careful."

"I hate having you in danger because of what I do."

"When I worked for Buzzwire, how many times did you protect me?"

"Don't remind me," Mick said ruefully.

Beth put on a determined face. "Then I suggest that we both look out for each other, and you don't worry so much about me. After all, you've trained me and I'll get more experience as I get older."

Mick drew her up into a passionate kiss. Beth molded herself against him, slipping her hands under his Henley shirt. Mick responded, but then pulled away. "We need to go," he said with a small smile.

"Huh?" Beth said, totally immersed in her husband's kisses.

"Josef wants me to check out a vampire who died under mysterious circumstances. I figured you would want to come along."

It was Beth's turn to grimace at Mick. "You have lousy timing."

"I just want to keep you in the loop," he said, with a wicked grin. "We can pick this up later."

Beth rolled her eyes. "Okay, let's get going."

Mick slung on his jacket, and moved with her to the doorway. He felt her love and contentment, deciding as long as she was happy, he'd deal with it

They arrived at the Cleaner's headquarters, and entered the building. Beth had texted Guillermo and he was going to meet them there. After passing the entrance, a subordinate showed them through a maze of hallways and into a cold room. There were boxes lining the walls, and several metal tables, the one in the middle had a covered body.

Guillermo joined them, and went to stand with Mick next to the table. He nodded toward the body. "Wanna take a look?" Guillermo said to Mick.

"Yeah," Mick responded. Guillermo pulled back the cloth covering the former Max Fletcher.

"He doesn't look dead," Beth commented.

Mick frowned. He could smell physical decomposition, not the vampire decay he was used to. Yet, the body didn't look like a truly dead vampire. "No, he doesn't."

"Do we know when he died?" Beth asked.

"Uh, night before last," Guillermo replied. "Apparently, he died sitting in his house. His freshie found him."

"Have you examined the body?" Mick asked.

"Yeah, when they brought him in last night. No marks or anything," Guillermo said, as he covered the unfortunate vampire.

"I think we need to get blood samples. I'll call my friend Allison Linn, and see if she can look at them," Beth said, briskly.

Mick nodded. He remembered the doctor who had analyzed Coraline's blood when she'd been human after taking the so-called cure. "It's the only thing we have to go on at this point," Mick sighed.

"All right, bro," Guillermo said, looking around the room. They have the equipment here, so I'll meet you in the parking lot with the samples.

Beth smiled, "Thanks, G. We'll be out there."

They left the cold room and headed for the parking lot and stood by the Benz. Beth looked up at Mick, who hadn't said anything on their way out. "So, what do you think?"

Mick shook his head. "I've never seen anything like this—or heard of it. I hope your friend can tell us something."

"Could he have gotten some bad blood?" Beth asked.

"Possibly. Though if blood is tainted, we can usually taste it—unless it's poisoned." They looked at each other, remembering the contaminated blood both she and Josef had ingested in Geneva, but that had been tasteless. Perhaps the same thing happened here. Beth had only been a vampire a short time and wasn't aware of everything about their kind, but if Mick didn't know, it had to be something serious.

Feeling Beth's concern, Mick smiled. "Don't worry sweetheart, we'll find out what's going on. Why don't you call Dr. Linn and see if we can drop off the samples."

She nodded, and pulled out her phone. Luckily, her friend was at the lab and agreed to see the couple. After getting the blood samples from Guillermo, they headed over to Bioanalysis to see Dr. Allison Linn.

She met them at the door, "Hi Beth, it's been a while, you look great!" She smiled at Mick. "Good to see you again."

Beth felt a little guilty that she hadn't been in contact with Allison for a while. "Actually, Mick and I got married—"

"That's wonderful!" Allison interjected.

"Sorry we didn't invite you to the wedding," Mick put in. "It was really small, out in Colorado."

The doctor waved that aside. "It's all right, I'm happy for you," she looked up at Mick. "What do you have for me?"

"Some blood samples. We wondered if you could find out if there's anything odd about them."

"It's always blood with you two," Allison said shrewdly. "Follow me."

They went up an elevator to the lab. The doctor explained she could help them right away since she had time while waiting on some tests from another project.

Mick and Beth watched as Allison prepared the samples and worked with her instruments. After a few minutes the computers beeped, indicating the programs were done.

Allison studied the data intently, then turned to Mick and Beth with a frown. "You know this blood is from a dead person, right?"

"Yes." Mick responded. He knew she would ask questions so had a cover story ready. "This is for a client, and we have a friend in the morgue that was able to get us the samples."

"Hmm," she said, her eyes back on the computer screens. "It looks like whoever this person was—"

"It was a man," Beth volunteered.

"Okay, whoever this man was, he was taking massive amounts of dietary supplements."

"What do you mean?" Mick asked, frowning.

"He was taking herbs, his blood is full of them."

"What kind?"

Allison shook her head. "I'll have to run more tests to isolate as many as I can. It won't be that comprehensive because the blood is degraded."

"Will you let us know what you find out?" Beth asked.

Allison nodded, "I'll call you when I have a report."

Mick said, "Thanks for checking this out for us. Be sure to send us a bill."

Beth nodded. "It's for a client, so don't worry about the cost."

"All right," Allison smiled. "But promise we'll go out for drinks sometime soon to catch up."

"Of course," Beth grinned back. "I'll bring the wedding pictures."

The two vampires left the building and Mick said, "I think we'd better see Josef. he's concerned about this one. I'll let him know we're coming."

Beth nodded and Mick texted Josef and headed the Benz into the hills to Josef's house.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Josef was pacing in his home office. After he'd heard about the death of Max Fletcher, he'd been worried. He didn't like mysteries, and Fletcher's death was unexplained. He'd heard from Mick, and was glad that his friend and Beth were on the job. He wouldn't be happy until he knew what was going on. Unexplained deaths in his region were unacceptable in his mind. Could it be an enemy of Fletcher's? Was it a threat to other vampires in the city? He needed to know.

The door to his office opened a crack, and Josef scented his wife. He turned to her as she came to him.

"Josef, you have to stop worrying. We'll find out what happened," Simone said, touching his cheek. "Mick and Beth are on it, and they'll figure it out. I'm sorry Max is dead, but it's not like the plague has descended."

He gave his wife a small smile. He knew she was trying to make him feel better, but he had a bad feeling. "I don't know, doll. I've never heard of a vampire dying like this."

Simone nodded. If Josef was uneasy, it affected her as well. She hoped Mick and Beth could ease Josef's mind.

"Have you heard from Mick?"

"He called a few minutes ago. He and Beth are coming up here. I hope he has some answers."

"He's good at what he does, and you know Beth is a bulldog, she never gives up."

Josef smiled at his wife's description of her friend. Beth had earned Josef's respect and admiration when they had been kidnapped in Geneva. If not for Beth's tenacity, Josef knew he would be truly dead.

"I'm glad she's on our side," Josef smirked.

Just then, Mick and Beth arrived, and greeted their friends.

"Have a drink," Simone said.

"I could use one," Beth responded as Simone poured her some freshly donated blood.

Reigning in his impatience, Josef got Mick a scotch, then asked, "What did you find?"

Mick told them about their visit to the Cleaners and then what Dr. Linn discovered.

Josef shook his head. "Herbal supplements? Why would a vampire take that stuff?"

"I have no idea, but we need to talk to his donor. Is she still here?"

"Yes, she's been shaken up, and I think she's probably asleep now," Simone said.

"That's all right, we'll come back tomorrow," Beth said. She looked at Mick. "We need to search Fletcher's house and find whatever he was taking."

Josef was relieved it was likely that no outside enemy killed Fletcher, but he still wanted to know why the vampire had died. "At least it seems that only Fletcher was targeted," Josef said.

"That's what we need to find out," Mick commented grimly.

TBC

_**Again, thanks for sticking with the story. I'm feeling better and plan to post more regularly now. Next, the new DA looks into an old case that puts the vampires at risk.**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**Here is the next chapter, and thank you for the reviews and support for the story. You guys are awesome! Now, the new DA causes some problems for our vamps. Enjoy!**_

Chapter 3

It was late afternoon on a cloudy day in Los Angeles, and Ben Talbot welcomed the respite from the sun. He was in his office at Talbot Walker Associates, on an upper floor at the Kostan Building, studying some merger papers for a vampire business in Seattle. When he and Simone started the law firm, they sent out information to all vampire companies that dealt with Kostan Industries, notifying them that their new practice catered to 'special' clients. They had been inundated with business from across the US as well as other countries. They had to bring in several part-time front desk employees, specifically from the ranks of donors that Josef was assisting through school. Amy was on duty now while Sofia Harrison, their paralegal, was filing some documents at the courthouse.

Ben put aside the contracts with a sigh. Simone usually handled mergers, while he focused on liability issues. It wasn't trial work, but he was able to interact directly with clients and that's what he enjoyed. He still had his eye on political office, and hoped in a few years he would be comfortable enough as a vampire to take on the State legislature.

His sensitive hearing picked up someone talking in the outer office. In a moment, Amy opened the door and entered, closing it behind her. She looked at him with a little frown, "Mr. Talbot, there's a Mr. Hemmings, from the DA's office to see you."

Ben tried not to react in surprise, and said, "Send him in, Amy."

She quickly exited and ushered the visitor in. Ben stood, taking in the human. He perceived the man was a little uncertain. Ben held out his hand and said, "Ben Talbot, glad to meet you."

The man smiled, and returned, "Rob Hemmings. I'm the new District Attorney for LA."

"Have a seat," Ben said, resuming his chair. "How can I help you?"

Rob studied Ben Talbot before replying. He'd heard some about him from office staff. They liked the former ADA and were sorry he left. Now he said, "I was hoping you could help with an unsolved case from a couple of years ago."

"Oh? What case is that?'

"The murder of a Hearst basketball player, Dominic Michaels."

Ben stiffened, and cursed himself for letting the human see it. "Not our finest hour," Ben smiled ruefully, playing off his reaction.

"I thought I'd start with you since your team headed the investigation. I've read the reports but wanted to hear your thoughts about what happened."

Back in control, Ben answered, "We had the proof and the perp, but she got away. We tried tracking her, but she and her husband disappeared." Ben knew the real story; that Emma and Jackson Monahan were vampires, and after Emma accidently killed her lover Dominic, she was arrested and then threatened to reveal the vampire community. Josef and Mick along with others, helped Emma escape only for her to be burned to death with her husband after being judged by the Cleaners. Ben knew that Emma and Jackson would never be found, so he relaxed a little.

"Everything was a dead end. After going over all the evidence we could find, we figured her husband was behind her escape, but he disappeared as well. I'm betting they had new identities and got out of the country. No new leads came in and we had to put it aside for other cases."

Rob sat back in his chair. "I know how that goes. I think there are still some anomalies about Emma's escape."

"What did we miss?" Ben asked, frowning.

"I'd rather not say until I look into it further."

"Is your office reopening the case?" _Not good_, Ben thought.

"No, I'm looking into it on my own," Rob smiled. "I like to dig into interesting unsolved cases—it's kind of a hobby of mine."

Ben could tell the new DA wasn't going to give him any further details, so he said, "I'd appreciate it if you could keep me in the loop if you find anything. That case was one of the failures on my watch."

"Sure," Rob said as he stood up. "I understand."

Handing over his business card, Ben escorted the human to the door. Amy watched as Ben closed the door and turned to her sharply, "I don't want to be disturbed."

Amy nodded, her eyes wide. Ben was usually a very easy going vampire. "Is everything all right?" she asked.

He felt her concern and said, "Nothing to worry about," he replied. _Yet._ "When Sofia gets back send her to my office, please."

Ben went back to his desk and picked up his phone. He needed to call Megan.

"Hello," she answered.

"Hi, honey," Ben said.

Immediately, Megan could tell something was wrong. "What's happened?"

"I can't talk on the phone, where are you?"

"I'm at the store looking for a new laptop, remember?"

"Oh, yeah. How soon can to get to the office?"

"In about twenty minutes. I'll be there as soon as I can." She hung up and Ben felt relieved. He wasn't a fledgling anymore, but he still relied on her in stressful situations.

Ben turned back to his contracts to try to finish them before Megan arrived. He was emailing the final documents to Simone when Megan came in. He could feel her love and concern. "Ben, what's happened?"

He led her to the sofa and said, "I had a visit today from the new DA."

Megan shook her head. "I hadn't heard there was a new DA. Who is he?"

"No one I know."

"Why did he want to see you?"

Ben took an unneeded breath. "He's investigating the Emma Monahan case."

It took a moment for Megan to remember. "Why, have they found more evidence?"

"No," Ben responded. "It's this DA's hobby to investigate cold cases and he found the police files on the Monahans. I worked on the case when it happened, but I don't know much from the vampire perspective."

"I wasn't here either, but I heard a little about it from Josef." Megan turned to Ben in alarm. "Oh, we have to tell Josef. He's going to be upset."

Ben smirked, "That's why I wanted to talk to you first. Josef needs to know, but I don't want him going off the deep end until we find out what this guy might have."

Just then, Sofia came in. "Amy said you wanted to see me." She took in Megan and Ben and knew whatever was going on, it wasn't good. They filled her in on the DA's visit and she shook her head.

Sofia said, "Josef's going to go ballistic. And you're not sure how much the DA knows?"

"No and that's why we have to handle this carefully," Megan said.

"You should talk to Mick. From what I understand, he was involved in the whole thing. He may be able to keep Josef from killing the guy."

Ben and Megan nodded. That was what they feared as well.

"We don't want that," Megan said. Even though Josef was the Elder of the region, Megan, as well as Ewan, were older and could pull rank if necessary, dealing with an angry Josef was never pleasant.

"I think we'd better see Mick as soon as we can," Ben said.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

"Did you find anything?" Mick called.

Beth came to the top of the stairs, "No nothing up here."

With vampire speed, Mick joined her in the sprawling home of the deceased vampire, Max Fletcher. They were looking for anything that might have contributed to the mysterious death.

Mick looked at his wife and thought how beautiful she was in her low-slung jeans and short midriff-baring tee shirt. They were alone in the large house. Mick could see the temptingly cold swimming pool through the window. He sighed to himself, knowing they needed to finish checking the house for any possible links to the death.

They had spoken to Marie, the exclusive freshie who found Max's body. She was still staying at Josef's until they found the cause of death. Marie had been nervous, but willing to help. She told the couple that Max had changed his habits in the last few weeks, and was actually spending time outside. He told her he had some new treatment that made him immune to the sun.

Beth said, "There's nothing in the bathroom or bedroom, just hairbrushes and things."

"Did you find the freezer?"

She nodded, "Yes, nothing of interest in there either."

Mick rubbed the back of his neck, thinking. "How about the trash?"

"Good idea. We'll finish up here first."

They headed for the bedroom, but found nothing of consequence. After checking the downstairs rooms, they went to the garage trash bin.

"Ewww," Beth gasped. There were times when enhanced senses were a liability.

"C'mon, sweetheart, lets finish this up and get home to a shower," Mick grinned as he dumped out the bin onto the floor.

It only took a few minutes to find a capped bottle that was labeled EverSun. It was empty, and Beth handed it to Mick.

He read everything on the bottle. "It doesn't say much—no ingredients, and no other information, just an email address to reorder. We don't even know if this is relevant to the death."

Beth took it from him, and said, "Well, we'd better place an order and see what's in this stuff."

"Okay, but let's buy it using Max Fletcher's name and credit card."

"Good idea," Beth said. They locked up and left. It was after dark, so Mick put the top down on the Benz for the drive back downtown. "Fletcher had a nice place," Mick commented.

"Um-hmm," Beth said, her thoughts elsewhere.

"Did you like the house?" Mick asked.

"Yes," she said, her focus returning to her husband. "Why?"

He stretched in the seat a little. "I don't know, I was thinking it might be nice to have a larger place. With a pool."

"Mick, you want to buy Fletcher's house?"

"What do you think?"

"Well….it could be a weekend getaway. It's pretty far from downtown and it's already set up for vampires, but we don't know who it belongs to now," Beth said.

"Josef would know. When we're done with this case, we can look into it if you want."

She smiled and scooted closer to Mick as they drove. "I think that would be a good idea."

Mick's phone rang and he said, "Speaking of Josef." He handed the phone to Beth who answered on speaker. "Hi, Josef."

"Beth, where's Mick?"

"I'm driving, Josef. We're heading back from Fletcher's house."

"Did you find anything?" Josef sounded impatient.

"We have something we need to follow up on," Mick responded.

"What is it?"

"We don't know yet, we have to look into it," Beth answered.

They could hear Josef growl on the other end. Beth rolled her eyes and said, "C'mon Josef, we'll let you know as soon as we find out. Why don't you go corner the market in Bangkok or something?"

"Hmmf," Josef grunted. "All right, Blondie. Don't take too long." They heard a click as Josef hung up.

"He wouldn't let me get away with that," Mick grinned.

"Yeah, well he knows Simone wouldn't be happy if he was rude to me."

Mick's phone rang again. Beth looked down and saw it was Ben. "Guess you're popular tonight. Hello?"

"Beth? I was looking for Mick," Ben said.

"He's driving right now, so I'm playing secretary. What can we do for you?" Beth knew Mick could hear the other end of the conversation.

"There's a problem and we need to talk with Mick. You too, of course. If you're close to your place Megan and I can come over."

"What's wrong?" Mick asked.

"I don't want to go into it over the phone."

"All right." Mick took his bearings. "I think we're closer to your condo. We can be there in fifteen minutes."

"Great. I'll tell the concierge to let you up." Ben and Megan like most vampires, lived in a secure building.

When they got to their friends place, Mick rang the doorbell and was immediately admitted by Megan. She greeted the couple and offered refreshments. When they had their blood and scotch, Mick asked, "What's going on?"

Ben took a sip and said, "I had a visitor today. Robert Hemmings the new DA. He told me he's investigating Emma Monahan's disappearance."

Both Mick and Beth sat up. "What?" Mick growled.

"He came to me because I was the Assistant DA at the time." Ben told his friends about Hemming's visit and what he learned.

"So he's not officially opening the case?" Beth asked.

"No, but he said he had some things he wanted to investigate. He wouldn't elaborate."

Mick thought furiously and ran over that unhappy time in his mind. Emma had been adamant that she would expose the vampire community, so they had to engineer her escape from the human police. Did they miss something? "We don't know what he might find," Mick commented.

"I know," Ben said. "We have to tell Josef but I don't want him going crazy and killing the DA. You know that's going to be his first thought."

"Right," Mick sighed.

"Did the DA tell you what he was planning?" Beth asked.

Ben shook his head. "He didn't tell me anything. I asked him to keep me in the loop, but he might not."

"We need to find out what he's doing," Megan chimed in. "If he's working on his own time, he's probably doing it at home. We need to get into his house and bug the hell out of it."

Megan's comment surprised everyone. "Good idea," Beth approved. "Maybe we can keep Josef from killing him outright. We could get Logan to try and hack Hemming's home computer and keep track that way."

"We still have to tell Josef," Mick said, glumly.

Beth took her husband's hand. "We can go over there tomorrow night, after we get Logan set up. We'll have to find out Hemming's schedule so we can get into his place."

Ben sat back in relief. "Thanks, you guys. I don't want to be responsible for a death, but I know we have to tell Josef."

"Don't worry, Ben," Beth said with a smile. "We'll monitor this guy and hopefully he'll get tired of dead ends and give up."

Ben stood, along with their guests. "Let me know if there's anything I can do."

The couple took a detour to Logan's basement. After suitable money changed hands, the vampire computer geek agreed to help monitor Hemming's house. They ended up telling Logan about the investigation into the Monahan's disappearance.

"So why am I keeping track of this guy? Why not just kill him?" Logan asked.

Beth rolled her eyes. "We want to avoid that if we can. It would cause more trouble than it's worth."

"All right, he who has the gold makes the rules. As long as you're paying me," Logan grinned.

"Okay, man. Record anything you find," Mick said.

The couple left the basement and Mick grunted when he slouched behind the driver's seat.

"Tired, sweetheart?" Beth asked. It had been a long night.

"Yeah," he responded.

"Let's get home. I think we deserve an ice bath then the freezer."

"You read my mind," Mick grinned, pulling Beth closer to him as he drove.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Josef Kostan was still in his office getting ready to leave. He'd been on a conference call with London and was looking forward to seeing Simone at home. His private line rang, and he frowned in annoyance. Not recognizing he number he answered cautiously, "Hello?"

"Mr. Kostan, it's Rosa Chavez, you remember?"

It took a moment for his memory to click in on Rosa. Back in the 70's he'd been in Chicago as Charles Fitzgerald for a while and she was one of his freshies. Years later when Rosa retired, she came to LA and happened to see his picture in the paper. She contacted him to let him know she was in town. He'd given her his number, but it had been a while and he'd lost track of her.

"Yes, Rosa, I remember. How are you?"

"Fine, as always. Getting on a bit, but still enjoying life," she replied.

"I'm glad. What can I do for you?" Josef asked. If one of his old donors needed something, he would always help.

"It's what I can do for you, Josef. I'm working for the city, part time in the records department. Been here five years now."

"Yes?"

"I'll get to the point." Rosa knew Josef was all about the bottom line. "The district attorney's office had me pull some old files a couple of weeks ago. All of them came back to be re-filed except the one for Emma Monahan."

"What do you know about that?" Josef asked, dismayed.

He heard a soft chuckle on the other end. "Don't worry Josef, your secrets are safe with me, or should I say us. There's a group of your former freshies that get together once in a while and I heard about the Monahans from them."

Josef shook his head to himself. It seemed the grapevine was alive and well. "You say the DA has the file?"

"Yes. I'm friends with some people up on his floor and they said he likes to work cold cases on his own time. I have no idea why he picked the Monahans, but I wanted to tell you about it."

"Do you know if he's found anything?"

"No, but I'll try to find out."

"Thank you, Rosa. If you hear anything else—"

"I'll call you immediately. Don't worry Josef, the ladies and I have your back."

"Tell them hello," Josef smirked as he hung up. He'd look into Rosa and her friends later. Now he walked to the window where the first streaks of dawn showed over the buildings.

_Damn Emma Monahan_, Josef thought to himself. Her reckless behavior had put them all at risk and she'd suffered the true death. Now it seemed Emma was coming back to haunt the vampire community.

Josef growled a little. He couldn't allow threats to his region. This new district attorney was going to have to disappear.

TBC

_**Oops, Josef found out sooner than Mick and Beth wanted. Between the DA and the unexplained death, our vamps have their work cut out for them.**_

_**Thanks for reading and reviewing, I appreciate all of you out there!**_

Mick sat at his desk, reading the report from Dr. Allison Linn


	4. Chapter 4

_**Here's the next bit, and I appreciate all your reviews—you guys are great! Now, Josef isn't too happy with what he knows about the new DA. Enjoy!**_

Chapter 4

It was dusk when the Mercedes Benz came through Josef's gates. It was the night after Ben told Mick and Beth about the new LA District Attorney. Logan had worked his computer magic and Mick had a dossier on the human, with complete history and home address. Mick opened the door for Beth, and escorted her into the house. Hale, the butler, directed them to the library.

They saw Josef alone at the elegant bar that graced the end of the room. "Mick, Beth, what a surprise," Josef said in a cool tone.

Mick felt Josef's tension and realized his friend was distressed. Beth was slower to pick up the older vampire's attitude and said, "Hi, Josef."

Mick moved in front of Beth, shielding her and said, "We wanted to tell you about what we found at Fletcher's house."

When Mick put her behind him, Beth finally felt the stress coming from Josef. She frowned and popped out around her husband. "What's going on, Josef?" she demanded.

"It seems the new DA for Los Angeles is interested in the Monahan case."

They both frowned, and Mick responded, "We heard about it last night."

"And you're just telling me about it now?" Josef growled.

"We found out about it from Ben. We asked Logan to look into this guy and we'll be checking out what he knows."

Josef casually poured some more scotch. "There's no need."

"What?" Mick snapped. "Josef, what did you do?"

"I took care of the problem. I figured you wouldn't want to deal with it, so I called a couple of vamps in Vegas."

"You—you mean you're going to have him killed?" Beth sputtered in disbelief.

"Right, Blondie. I have to protect my region," Josef said in a cold voice.

Beth almost vamped out in her anger and advanced on the older vampire. "Don't 'Blondie' me. You know Mick and I can handle Hemmings. There's no need to kill him.

Grabbing Beth before she got too close to Josef, Mick said, "Josef, this guy is a high profile human. His death will cause repercussions. If they find out he was investigating the Monahans, we could be in even more trouble."

"That's why it's going to look like an accident," Josef said, smugly.

Freeing herself of her husband's grip, Beth asked, "Does Simone know about this?"

For the first time, Josef looked uncomfortable. "That's beside the point."

_Aha!_ Beth thought to herself. "Listen, Josef, you think because this guy is human, I don't want him killed—that's not it. We don't know if he'll find anything, or if he's told anyone what he's after. There are too many loose ends if he just dies in a car accident or something."

Mick listened, proud that Beth wasn't afraid of Josef and was willing to stand up to him.

"Josef," Mick said reasonably, "we came here to tell you about Hemmings and what we plan to do to keep this contained."

Josef hated to be wrong, but also knew Simone would prefer Mick's plan. He was used to running the region on his own, but Mick's idea had merit. He moved back over to the bar and poured his friends a liberal amount of his expensive single malt scotch. Handing them the glasses, he said, "What did you have in mind?"

Mick relaxed, seeing that Josef was willing to listen. "He's just started to look into the case. He's researching at home in his off time."

Nodding, Josef took a sip from his glass. "Okay, tell me what you found out and what you plan to do about it."

Mick related what Ben told them, and that Logan was going to monitor anything heard from the bugs.

"All right," Josef said, "I'll call off the Vegas guys for now. You better find out what's going on. If this DA gets too close, you know what I'll do."

"I don't know what he could find by this time. Ben said they investigated and I'm sure the cops were thorough," Mick said, relieved that Josef was willing to back off.

"We'll keep track of what he's doing," Beth added.

"What did you find at Fletcher's place?" Josef asked, changing the subject.

Beth produced the bottle and handed it to Josef.

"This is all?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Maria said Fletcher was spending time out in the sun, that he had some new miracle drug that made him immune. All we could find that was unusual was that bottle," Beth said.

"We used Fletcher's credit card and ordered from the website on the bottle."

"What did the website show?"

"Not much," Beth frowned. "Just the ability to place an order. It's going to be sent to Fletcher's house and after we get it, we'll have the contents analyzed. We'll see if the pills match what was found in Fletcher's blood."

"It's a slim lead," Josef commented.

Mick shrugged. "It's the only thing we have to go on. Except for the pills, Fletcher led a normal vampire life according to Marie."

The group sat silent for a moment. Then Mick asked, "So who owns Fletcher's house now?"

Josef looked surprised. "I'm not sure. We'll have to see if he had a will and left it to anyone. Why, thinking of moving to the hills?"

"Could be," Mick smiled. "We have to talk it over."

"Well, see to this DA problem before you start picking out wallpaper," Josef grumbled.

Beth smirked, "Quit worrying. We're going to check out his house as soon as he leaves tomorrow."

"Let's go, sweetheart, we need some rest if we have to be up in the daylight," Mick said and led Beth out of the room.

After they left, Josef placed a call to his friends in Las Vegas to cancel Hemmings accident. He still thought it was a good idea, but he'd give Mick and Beth a chance first.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Mick crouched down as he picked the lock with his usual efficiency. He and Beth were at the back door of Robert Hemmings' house, intending to plant some listening devices and check the DA's computer. They watched the human leave earlier, then slipped down the side yard to the back of the house.

Entering, Mick check to see if there were any security cameras around. He didn't see any, and he and Beth proceeded to plant the listening devices in the office and living areas.

After they were done, Beth found the DA's personal laptop and turned it on. Mick searched the desk drawers and pulled out some file folders. He rifled through them and said, "Here's information on the Monahans."

Beth peered over his shoulder as Mick paged through the police evidence sheets.

"Are there any notes?" Beth asked.

"No, I can't find any. There's nothing here," he said in frustration.

"Hmm, let me have a look at the computer." She clicked through the folders and located some files that seemed to be promising until she saw they were encrypted. "Damn," she breathed. Inserting a flash drive, she copied the files hoping they might be able to figure out the passwords later.

Mick continued to go through the folders and found a couple of DVD's, labeled with the date of Emma's escape. He handed them to Beth and she loaded one into the computer. When it opened it looked like a recording of traffic from the street cameras.

Mick frowned. "This looks like the night we rescued Emma. They must be recordings from the cameras on the streets."

Beth watched avidly. Mick had only given her a short version of what happened that night. She saw an ambulance pull up, then disappear out of camera range.

"Save it, then copy it to the flash drive," Mick said. "We don't have time to go over it here."

Beth nodded, made the transfers and pulled out the flash drive, confirming there were no traces of her access. "All set," she said.

"Let's get out of here," Mick responded.

They went out the back door and Mick re-locked it.

When they got back to the loft, Mick called Josef. The older vampire was still awake, waiting for the call.

"Hey, Josef."

"What did you find?"

"Just the police files, and a couple of DVDs of the streets the night we got Emma out."

"Anything else?"

"It doesn't look like he's gotten very far. We pulled some files from his computer but they're encrypted and we'll get them to Logan. We planted audio bugs so we can hear if he contacts anyone about the case. So far, I think we're in the clear. Did you call of your guys from Vegas?"

"Yeah, I told them to stand down for now."

"Good. We'll keep on it." Mick rubbed his hand over his face. We're going to catch some freezer time."

"Fine," Josef said. He was looking forward to joining his wife in their freezer as well. He hoped the situation with the DA could be handled, but he was still worried.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

It had been a long day, and Robert Hemmings entered his house and threw down his briefcase. He was tired and wanted a shower and something to eat. He liked to cook and had some leftover lasagna in the refrigerator. After a shower, he changed into sweats and made a quick dinner, then watched a bit of television. Feeling more relaxed he headed into his office. Pulling files out of his desk, he reviewed some of the documents, then turned on his computer. He had some ideas about the videos from the street cameras the night Emma Monahan disappeared. He'd watched them numerous times and slowed down the speed as much as he could. He was sure he'd seen some odd movement but it was too fast to identify. Thinking a bit, he remembered an old friend in Chicago who was something of a computer specialist. Rob wondered if his friend might be able to do anything with the video. He got on Facebook and made contact, hopeful his friend would be able to help.

Rob made a few notes into his encrypted computer files and determined his next step would be to talk to the guards that were in the transport van with the suspect. He would look for them tomorrow.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Ewan knocked on the door to Megan and Ben's condo. He'd had a call from Ben, asking him to come to their home. Ben sounded a little tense and Ewan wondered what might be wrong. He had come to admire the former ADA, and was pleased that Megan had found someone after their sire had been killed. Ewan appreciated Ben's good sense, even as young as he was.

Megan opened the door and gave him a big smile. "Hello, dearest."

Ewan came in, giving his sister a kiss on the cheek. "Sorry Sofia couldn't come, she's presenting a motion at the circuit court."

"That's all right. Ben wants your feedback."

"About what?"

Megan led her brother into the elegant living area. Ben came out of his office and shook Ewan's hand. "Thanks for coming. I came across a problem and I hope you can help."

"What's going on?"

Ben explained about Robert Hemmings and how they were trying to avoid killing the human. As he listened, Ewan looked grave. He knew the younger vampire wanted his support. He responded, "I'm sorry, but I have to agree with Josef."

Ben looked at him in astonishment. "I—I thought you'd be against killing."

"I am," Ewan said mildly. "But in certain circumstances it's necessary. I don't mean to be patronizing, but you've never been in a situation where humans are out to destroy you. Megan and I have."

Megan smiled sadly. "It was many years ago in Germany and some of our vampire friends were betrayed by their donors. The townspeople staked them and buried them, thinking they were truly dead. We were able to get them out and we left the country."

"But Mick is going to watch this guy and make sure he's not a danger," Ben said.

"If he can. It will be impossible to monitor the human around the clock. If he finds anything, it could be a danger to us all."

Ewan knew Ben was disappointed, and left after a few more words. As he went down the elevator, he felt slightly alarmed. It had taken him centuries to find someone like Sofia, and now he was happy and settled with work he liked and friends around. If it was necessary, he would protect what he had. Ewan decided he would talk to Josef soon.

xxxxxxxxxxx

The Fed Ex service from Europe was reliable and when Mick and Beth pulled up to the former Max Fletcher's residence, they could see the package on the front porch. Beth opened it and confirmed the bottle they had ordered was inside. She cracked the seal and found gelatin capsules with a brown substance inside.

Mick broke one open and tasted it. "Yuck," he spluttered, spitting onto the grass. "I can't imagine why any vampire would take this stuff."

Beth rooted around in the package and found some papers. "Here are the directions. In French, English, Spanish and Japanese. It says to take two a day with blood. Or, you can open the capsules and mix the powder into the blood."

"It's obviously for vampires," Mick commented, looking at the papers.

"It says the formula will protect the user from ultraviolet rays from the sun, or tanning beds."

"Tanning beds?" Mick said in disbelief.

"Yup," Beth said. "We need to get these pills to Allison at the lab to look at them and find out any of it matches Fletcher's blood."

Mick looked at the bottle of pills and said, "I wonder what effect they really have?"

"You can't want to try them?" Beth asked, aghast.

He frowned. "I suppose not. But if other vamps are using them and they're dangerous, we'd have heard of more deaths."

"I suppose," Beth said, doubtfully. "But I don't want you to do anything until Allison gives us her analysis."

"All right, sweetheart," Mick said, giving her the little smile she loved. Within a moment, Beth was in his arms kissing him.

"Mmmm," Mick responded, kissing her neck. "There's no one here and that pool is nice and cold…"

"Are you suggesting a swim, Mr. St. John? I don't have a swimsuit."

"Who said anything about needing a suit?" Mick said suggestively.

"I like the way you think," Beth replied, and sped off around the house toward the pool.

_I love a woman who knows what she wants, _Mick thought as he followed his wife to the shimmering water.

TBC

_**I know this chapter bounced around a bit, but there's a lot going on. Next, Mick and Beth find out more about the mysterious death, and the DA learns more about Emma Monahan's disappearance. Thanks for reading, and hope you enjoyed!**_


End file.
